It’s not uncommon for James Hardie employees to say that their co-workers are like their family, but in the case of Hercules and Trey Stancil, that really is the case. Hercules Stancil has been a shipping supervisor for James Hardie Building Products at the Plant City, FL manufacturing facility for 18 years. Two years ago, his son, Trey, joined him there as a maintenance engineer for the production line.
This Father’s Day, we asked the Stancils to share their experiences working together at James Hardie.
How did the two of you come to work together at James Hardie?
HERCULES:
My son watched me grow at James Hardie and he was curious about the company I worked for. Trey was presented with several opportunities for work and he chose to start his career with James Hardie.
TREY:
James Hardie’s culture is unique from any other work environment one could be a part of. Many times people have family attributes or values that line up with James Hardie’s and that makes it much more likely to see family members working together a positive experience.
What is it like sharing a workplace with a relative?
HERCULES:
It’s different when you have a son who works at the plant with you. We do different things—I’m a shipping guy, he’s an engineer, and we can cross reference things.
TREY:
For me, it’s been really positive. I definitely get a lot of insight on the way the plant works and how we do things. I get tidbits of knowledge that are a lot easier to get from your dad than through the grapevine, and that’s been really helpful to get things done as a project engineer. And I’ve been able to help him out too, to give my newer insight on things as well. There is no communication gap between us because we’ve known each other my entire life.
What do you have planned for Father's Day?
TREY:
A good day for [my dad] is to allow him to enjoy his day and kind of relax, maybe watch a ball game and eat whatever food he wants and spend time with his family. He really is the quintessential family man, always has been. I have three younger brothers and my dad really enjoys being around his family.
HERCULES:
First thing in the morning we go to church. The next thing on my mind is what type of ball game is on, then food, in that order. My son hit it dead on. I think my kid knows me quite well.
The Stancils are a hard-working duo down in Plant City and a father-son pair that make up part of the larger James Hardie family of employees. The two naturally make a good team, even if they’re working on separate ends of the production line.
